Judges still render judgments for money – NBA

The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) has said that judicial officers still engage in rendering judgments for money.
NBA President, Augustine Alegeh (SAN) stated this yesterday at the special session of the Supreme Court to mark the commencement of the 2015-2016 legal year and swearing-in of newly conferred Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SAN) in Abuja.

Alegeh said: “It is still very worrying that certain judicial officers still engage in rendering judgments for a fee.

“Instances abound where judicial officers have resorted to turning the law on its head and making pronouncements which are at variance with the provisions of the law.

“This trend is quite injurious and erodes the confidence reposed in the judiciary by society,” Alegeh declared.
The NBA President however, commended the current leadership of the Bench under the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) for bringing transparency to bear in the appointment of judicial officers.

He said the appointment of judges in the past was shrouded in secrecy.
Speaking on the ongoing legal battle between the Senate President, Bukola Saraki and the Federal Government, Alegeh said it was an unnecessary distraction.

Earlier, the CJN Mahmud Mohammed said the allegation of corruption over judges was unfortunate.
“I regard as unfortunate unguarded comments of some prominent members of the Bar that the judiciary is corrupt.

“Such comments coming from the members of the Bar means that they know the identity of the corrupt judges and as such they should fish them out to be dealt with by the National Judicial Council (NJC),” he said.